Niamh McElherron is the Manager of the Centre for Public Health in the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences and is responsible for the financial, human resource and physical resource of the Centre. 

Background

Niamh is orginally from Dublin and has been working in Higher Education since 1993, first at Durham University, including 12 years as an Executive Administrator to the Head of the largest Geography Department in the UK, before joining Queen's University in 2009.

Niamh has 29 years experience of working with academic and research colleagues in a research intensive environment with a strategic focus on the importance of excellence in teaching and research, and aspirations for improving globalisation, widening participation, internationalisation and investing in its people.  

Current roles and responsibilities

Niamh is one of three Research Centre Managers in the School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences. She is responsible for the financial, human resource and physical resource of the Centre for Public Health and acts as the conduit between the University's Faculty/Directorates and all staff and postgraduate research and taught students in the Centre.

Niamh works on a wide range of tasks with staff from across the University, including academic and Research Finance colleagues in relation to grant applications and post award management; colleagues in People and Culture around recruitment, retention, and related HR activities; colleagues in the Faculty around budget planning and management; and with Estates to ensure the sustainability of adequate physical resources for the Centre. 

As a Research Centre Manager, Niamh has a complete overview of the research grant activity that takes place within the Centre for Public Health. This involves working with academic colleagues and their research teams from the start of the application process with funding, right through to the submission. Once the grant is awarded Niamh works closely with the academic member of staff and their team to make sure that all of the deliverables are met and their budgets are balanced.

Contribution to specific research initiative or project

The Centre for Public Health has had a diverse research portfolio since its inception and Niamh has been involved in the planning and detailed negotiation stages and subsequent sustainability of many multi-funded research programmes in excess of £5M+, such as the largest longitudinal cohort (NICOLA) study (8,500 participants) in Northern Ireland, which is a long-term study of ageing in the over 50’s.